Materialism Vs Marxism

Materialism Vs Marxism
Marx's theory of Dialectical Materialism as well as the Existentialist's theory of Ontological Ethics invokes and embellishes the idea of the human
condition and our legitimate right to freedom and authenticity. Both theories coincide closely with each other due to the fact that some later
Existentialists based their theories on Marxism. Although Existentialists believe that Marxism was lacking in certain components there are still striking
similarities. For example, false consciousness is very much a parallel to inauthenticity. Marxism focuses more on one entity that restricts our right to
freedom than the role of the individual, but overall both theories pertain to the individual as well as societal groupings.
In Marx's theory of Dialectical Materialism he theorized that each civilization can be broken down into two components: a primary economic base and
a secondary ideological–social–political superstructure. The base involved in the...show more content...
Both of these philosophies rely on human choices and of the larger society, but for existentialists human freedom is completely susceptible.
Existentialists deny that there is any premade human nature which limits us to what we can do and what we are. It is an existentialist's nature to see
through and transcend past facticity and we must take responsibility for all of our choices because we as humans have the ultimate freedom and cannot
transfer this responsibility unto any other entity. Marxists, on the other hand regard human freedom as completely limited due to the socioeconomic
freedom brought about by the base in the superstructure, which allows for individuals to place blame on social systems such as capitalism. Although
they differ in this aspect both theories present belief that changing society would allow people to recognize their freedom and allow them to lead more
authentic
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Essay on Materialism in the Great Gatsby
"Money Changes Everything" by Cyndi Lauper illustrates the way people center their desires on material things such as money. The speaker in the
song leaves the poor man, solely because he does not have money, for the affluent one: "I'm leaving you tonight...There was one thing we weren't really
thinking of and that's money" (Lauper 1, 6–7). Like Cyndi Lauper, F. Scott Fitzgerald demonstrates the way people often center their desires on
material things such as money in The Great Gatsby. Daisy falls in love with Gatsby, who is a poor man at the time, and when Gatsby leaves for the
war, Daisy marries Tom Buchanan, who is a rich man, because he is "old money," meaning he will always have the money and status to support Daisy.
When Gatsby returns...show more content...
Daisy's materialism is revealed when she allows money to influence her decisions, and her life becomes a mess because of it, which is what Fitzgerald
tries to teach to his audience.
Gatsby's love for Daisy propels his materialism, which leads to his ultimate downfall. Gatsby uses his words and specious actions to prove to Daisy
that he is rich so she will love him by giving Daisy a tour of his house. Exploring Gatsby's house is when Gatsby is careful to point out to Daisy his
lavish possessions that are present in his many extravagant rooms: "We went upstairs, through period bedrooms swathed in rose and lavender silk and
vivid with new flowers, through dressing–rooms and poolrooms, and bathrooms, with sunken baths" (91). After strolling through Gatsby's house,
Gatsby takes Daisy up to his closet and begins to boast about his expensive clothes so that Daisy realizes that Gatsby is rich, and, "He took out a pile
of shirts, and began throwing them, one by one, before us, shirts of sheer linen and thick silk and fine flannel, which lost their folds as they fell and
covered the table in many–colored disarray" (92). Daisy's desire and obsession with materialistic things is also evident because after she sees all of
these shirts, she begins crying because of

Essay on Cultural Materialism
When it comes to anthropological theory the combination of several established ways of thought often result in a completely new and independent way
of thinking. Cultural Materialism is one of these children theories that resulted from a coming together of social evolutionary theory, cultural ecology
and Marxist materialism (Barfield). The goal of cultural materialism is to explain politics, economics, ideology and symbolic aspects of a culture with
relation to the needs of that society. From a cultural materialist point of view society is indisputably shaped by the factors of production and
reproduction. From this all other facets of society, such as government and religion, must be beneficial to that society's ability to satisfy the...show more
content...
However, cultural materialism and its more scientific approach has brought criticism from other schools of thought who feel that cultural materialism
is too simple and straight forward and completely disregards the thoughts and behaviors of a society, an aspect most feel is imperative to understanding
culture change. By not relying of native explanations of cultural events cultural materialism has pushed the field of anthropology to become more
scientific. This in turn may help anthropology to be known more as a hard science rather than a soft science.
Marvin Harris primarily laid the framework for the creation of the cultural materialistic point of view. He has written many works employing his
cultural materialistic study pattern. He garnered just as much praise as he did criticism from his peers for works, which is incredible when the fact
that his first book almost alienated many who held other view points. His work in India dealing with the sacred cow myth is considered to be his most
successful application of cultural materialism.
Cultural materialism is a relatively young school of thought and there are several up and coming anthropologists who subscribe to this point of view
and are applying it to many different areas of various different cultures. Brian Fergusson of Rutgers

Materialism in Society Essay
It is human nature for people to desire material possessions. Our material yearnings are an attempt to satisfy are need to special and wanted. In a
world where most of society defines "socially acceptable" as the material possessions one owns such as, the latest clothing, the biggest house, or the
fastest car one comes to believe that you need all of these things to be viewed as a part of society. For many, work has taken over community life and
has had a major effect on happiness. Advertising has also become a primary determinant of our satisfaction, and is only a small part of a larger
materialistic culture in which we are not only enticed customers but also prominent consumers. We have been beguiled into believing that material
...show more content...
Some of the possessions I have show me for what I want to be, but not for who I really am. My cell phone, for instance, describes me in many ways.
It shows that I am very talkative, professional, can afford expensive phones and accessories, and that I like to stay in touch with family and friends. I
have come to rely heavily on my cell phone and I just recently up–graded from a Razor to the new Envy phone from Verizon. I got the up–grade even
though my razor was in perfect condition and barely a year–old. It still amazes me how I just had to have this phone. I saw the commercial advertizing
it as the latest and best phone out. It displayed all of the new features that came with the phone and the new billing plans that came exclusively with
this phone. I wanted to be one of the first to own it so I went that same day and paid an extremely high fee to up–grade my phone and my billing plan.
I was so happy that I bought a clear, plastic, hard shell case and the most expensive Bluetooth Verizon had.
However, my car on the other hand describes my adventurous and outgoing personality. I like to travel to different places and for people to see and
admire my car. I want people to view my car and wonder who is driving that. I want to be the guy that advertisers display, the one who gets the really
attractive model, the sex appeal, and the overall swagger. I have found that I am a showoff and I really don't like it.
Having come to college I

Materialism
Materialism
America has been labeled "The land of opportunity," a place where it is possible to accomplish anything and everything. This state of mind
is known as "The American Dream." The American Dream provides a sense of hope and faith thatlooks forward to the fulfillment of human
wishes and desires. This dream, however, originates from a desire for spiritual and material improvement. Unfortunately, the acquisition of material has
been tied together with happiness in America. Although "The American Dream" can be thought of as a positive motivation, it often causes
people to strive for material perfection, rather than a spiritual one. This has...show more content...
Fitzgerald uses the word grail to suggest that for Gatsby, marrying Daisy is a type of a religious quest. Yet, truthfully, Daisy herself is not the key, but
the increase in status that she would bring him and the illusion that she carries with her. "He had thrown himself into it [the dream] decking it out with
every bright feather that drifted his way" (101). Gatsby is much more in love with the idea of Daisy, not the reality of who she is. He wants
everything she has and stands for. Gatsby wastes his entire adult life trying to achieve this idealistic dream.
Indeed he loves Daisy, but through his fantasy he builds her up to be someone she is not. Lost in his idealistic world, he molds his images of her into
a perfect specimen. Nick Carraway comments, "There must have been moments when Daisy tumbled short of his dreams, not through her own
fault, but because of the colossal vitality of his illusion", yet he refuses to acknowledge these moments" (101). His state of reality is so
greatly altered that he cannot believe she is not the absolute perfect woman he so desired five years ago. Jay Gatsby's obsession with Daisy gives him
a false illusion of her, much like the illusion of the American dream, both representing inevitable disaster. F. Scott Fitzgerald clearly uses Jay Gatsby to
represent the materialistic attitude of the 1920's. Literary critic Marius Bewley suggests that Jay Gatsby

Factors Of Materialism
Article 1: MATERIALISM: THE CONSTRUCT, MEASURES, ANTECEDENTS, AND CONSEQUENCES Definition: According to the authors,
materialism can be commonly defined as a belief that material objects are crucial and valuable. Materialistic person is one who values material
objects highly and from a sociological view, it is a culture which most people holds material as highly valuable subject. Nonetheless, the word has a
secondary meaning as it is an implicit and usually negative–value judgement to the degree where people who are described as being materialistic
commonly held to have a concern with only material things rather than important spiritual or intellectual fixation. However, the authors discussed the
articles openly with the possibility of having both positive and negative consequences. They also using the term that merely denote the degree to which
individuals or groups value material possessions. Measures: The authors mentioned and discussed numbers of approaches in terms of materialism
measures. Of these measures, those by Belk and Richins have been mainly stressed as it is claimed as the most widely used in marketing. In summary,
three measures of materialistic traits are possessiveness, non–generosity, and envy. Both researchers seem to...show more content...
Since there is no integrated theory of materialism, ideas about the causes of materialism may be derived from a wide variety of theoretical and ethical
perspectives. Generated as they are by different perspectives, the propositions laid down here are only loosely connected to each other and are, in some
cases, contradictory. For the innate materialism, they stated two factors which are Sex

Emerson Materialism
When did materialism become such a deeply ingrained part of man's sense of self? Since the dawn of time mankind has had an almost carnal desire to
possess the unattainable. To conquer and claim without much regard to moral obligation. To control and take whenever and whatever they pleased
without much consequence. Mankind is grappling with what it means to have a sense of self, because essentially, you are what you own in modern
society. Famed writer and poet Ralph Waldo Emersonexplores the possible root of mankind's infatuation with possessions in the following quote, "Men
have looked away from themselves and at things so long that they have come to esteem the religious, learned and civil institutions as guards of property
, and they deprecate...show more content...
Man wants esteem, so man turns away from God to possess worldly, materialistic objects. The possessive need becomes bigger and bigger until
suddenly it's not just esteem that man wants, it a need to sate the greed that lives within him as well. My Wood by E.M. Forster, Forster
demonstrates the effects of ownership on himself after he purchases his own property with the earnings from his novel. He says in reference to his
property that "it makes [him] feel it ought to be larger." Owning things can make people lose sight of who they are as a person and can deeply affect
their behavior around other people.A person who owns more expensive things can be viewed as someone who is materialistic, and deep down they
don't fully understand who they are as a person. People can own expensive things and have completely different interpretations about why they are
buying those things. When people buy expensive things for themselves it makes them seem self–absorbed because others don't get to have the luxury
of buying nice things for themselves. A person that doesn't always have the latest of gadgets and the fanciest of clothes are far more understanding
really get the meaning of owning something valuable. However, a person who owns everything they ever wanted, take things for granted and doesn't
truly appreciate what they have and from there is where greed can take over and consume a person's

Materialism in Today's Society Essay
Materialism in Today's Society
Have you ever sat down and really thought about how much you value your possessions? Do you value your belongings more than you value friends,
family, love, or yourself? The truth is that obsession with possessions has become a way of life in today's society.
Materialism has been defined as the theory or doctrine that physical well–being and worldly possessions constitute the greatest good and highest value
in life. (Heritage Dictionary, 3rd ed.) This means that we look to possessions to bring us happiness. We then use these possessions to make things and
people behave or respond the way we desire. We have become so successful at fabricating and manipulating the world that we have come to believe that
...show more content...
They often draw in the consumers with a catchy commercial that contains a celebrity or model sporting their brand. This is a sure bet way to get the
consumers? attention!
Materialism in Today?s Society 4
Many celebrities promote products without that intention. This is because young people who idolize these famous stars want to wear what they
wear.Therefore, this leads to free advertising for these corporations. One such group was the rap group Run–DMC. This group frequently wore the
Adidas brand. They liked the brand so much that they wrote a song called ?My Adidas.? (Klein 456).This song led Adidas to become a very
popular brand and people all over the United States started wearing the brand. Many people are brand ?hogs? and pursue what ever brand is in style.
If a celebrity is wearing a new brand, it can be assured that at least one person will mimic them.This is especially true when the aspect comes to teens.
Sharon Beder stated, ?In 2000 alone, teens spent $155 billion on things like clothing, CDs and makeup.? (Boston 2).
In fact, the younger population has become so infatuated with celebrities that they have begun getting plastic surgery to try to look like their favorite
celebrities. Two million young people had plastic surgery in 2003 alone (MTV, I Want a Famous Face).
Since 1997, there

Materialism Vs Marxism

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